For centuries the beautiful Texas Hill Country has nurtured and protected
plants and animals. But changing land-use patterns have put many of these
at risk.

The Balcones Canyonlands Plan (BCP) strives to provide a way to continue
that legacy through a cooperative arrangement with landowners, developers
and those who work to protect endangered species. The plan is designed
to protect 8 endangered species and 27 other plants and animals that are
at-risk.

The BCP is a multi-agency conservation effort which operates under a
regional 10(a) permit issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFW).
Though this permit was issued to the BCP's two managing partners, the
City of Austin and Travis County, several other organizations own and
manage Preserves dedicated to the BCP. These organizations include Travis
Audubon Society, the Lower Colorado River Authority, The Nature Conservancy
of Texas and numerous private land owners.

The BCP's goal is the acquisition and management of at least 30,428 acres.
By Summer, 2002, acreage dedicated to the Preserve totaled 26,323 acres.
The City of Austin's holdings totaled 13,034 acres and Travis County's
BCP acreage totaled 2,289 acres.

"One of the values that I see to the BCCP program, and one that
I think has made a difference for landowners, is that it offers them an
alternative," says former Austin Mayor Kirk Watson. "An alternative
to going through the lengthy, sometimes difficult, and goodness gracious
knows sometimes painful process to be able to do certain things with their
land."

Mayor Will Wynn says that this program is an important way to enable
this region to continue to thrive.